The alternative rock band ZUG made a quite a crash in Murfreesboro’s DIY music scene recently and took full advantage of ripe opportunities to shine. The boys are armed to the teeth with a cache of punk, blues, pop, reggae, and classic rock. They trade faces with the shadows of trademark rock sounds while remaining true to themselves. Above all, ZUG simply relies on two philosophical concepts to push their music far past the edge of the stage: peace and unity.
Jacob and Alex Zug traveled from Pennsylvania to attend MTSU and map out their place in the music industry. Up until that point, music played a big role in their lives. Writing music was the creative release that eventually led them to cross paths with Josh Dixon, a bassist from Nashville. ZUG released Crash in 2016 and quickly became embedded in Murfreesboro’s house show circuit. Over time, ZUG began to make regular live appearances at Kirkwood House, Bonhoeffers, The Boro Bar & Grill, The Wilkes Booth and Boro Fondo. The band’s reputation continues to glow brighter.
The heart of ZUG bleeds classic rock, but their sound evolves like a tumbling kaleidoscope. Crash includes four satisfying tracks cut from pure rock ’n’ roll. Beyond alternative rock, ZUG experiments with many other styles, which is also reflection of versatile songwriting skills. It takes confidence and a good ear to create music from fragments of other genres, and ZUG mixes subtle pieces of various styles.
In 2017, the music video for “One” broke the barrier, and since then the band has gained a Middle Tennessee following. Aside from playing live shows, ZUG also has a debut LP set in the distant future.
“We are adding a blend of electric and acoustic material,” Jacob notes.
Alex and Jacob also stand at the helm of a post-production company called Zug Productions. “It’s all about your art” is the tagline that drives the great work they do behind the scenes. The company offers tailored audio production services for commercial media clients. Quality, songwriting and composing is a joint labor of love that the Zugs depend on.
The future is looking really good for ZUG as 2019 opens its doors. From live shows to post-scoring work, the passion is evident in every project they touch.
